Poppies for Christmas
by Stacy Renée Keywell
Publication
Date: November 16, 2016
Publisher: Soul Mate Publishing, LLC
A celebration of love
without labels. It’s easy to be brave with you by my side!
Popular
DJ Dexx finds himself positively smitten by the precociously pristine Poppy
Paris. Too bad she’s already taken by an older boy, Declan Davies, a beautiful
model with a thriving career, and a perfect family. By a dreamful stroke of
chance, Dexx finds himself invited to spend Christmas at the Davies home by a
gorgeous girl, granting him the opportunity to pursue the precious Poppy. But
in his quest to win her over, he unlocks a world of imperfection and
insecurity, where people are picked on for their disabilities, speech,
appearance, and eccentricities. For Poppy and her friends, love trumps labels,
and everyone deserves a brave friend to stand by their side. What gifts will
Dexx discover this Christmas? Will he ultimately find true love, or will he
discover something even greater?
You
are invited to read a powerful story about living with autism, but not letting
it define you, about being bullied, but carrying on with determination and grit,
and about having dreams, but not giving up in the face of adversity. Come
celebrate something beautiful with Poppies for Christmas.
Purchase Links:
Excerpt:
We stood toe to toe in another awkward silence. Guests
moved around us, and disappeared. Time stood still.
“Um,”
Denver cleared her throat, and shook her long hair. “Let’s bundle up. Grab your
coat, hat, and gloves. We are going back outside.”
Her
eyes sparkled. The departure of her cantankerous relatives, and my pep talk
revived her zest.
After
layering on the warm clothing, Denver led me out the back entrance. Paper bags
populated either side of a shoveled pathway. Someone had cut out decorative
holes in each bag, resembling snowflakes, turning the sacks into lanterns.
Candles were placed inside the bags which lit up a long trail. The flames
flickered, and glowed yellow. The trail filled with a yummy, vanilla scent. The
candles created a festive yet eerie atmosphere, a happy nightmare.
Denver
and I stood outside alone in the blustery winter night. The wind prickled my
nose. A gust of white flakes swirled around Denver. The snow bowed down around
her, honoring her as if she were an ice queen.
At
the foot of the path was a basket. Denver picked out two long objects. She
dipped them into one of the glowing bags, and pulled them out with tiny flames.
She handed one to me. It was a long, white candle stuck in a plastic holder to
catch the wax. A red and green plastic poinsettia plant with red berries,
surrounded the candle. The bouquet had that nice, waxy, nostalgic fake flower
smell, reminiscent of shopping in the craft department with my mother as a
child. It brought me back home to my childhood. A bout of sadness enveloped me.
I momentarily missed my family, whom I left for this mysterious adventure.
Denver
playfully knocked into me with her elbow. She snapped me out of my homesick
state. Guided by the flickering lights, we began walking down the snow covered
path. We passed the snow hill, and entered the forested area. An animal howled
from a distance. The dark trees surrounded us in the woods. The sound took
Denver’s breath away, and startled her. She gulped, let out an eek, and bumped
into me again.
“Oops.”
She jumped.
We
both laughed.
“I’ll
protect you.”
“I’m
not afraid,” she defended herself.
“I
am,” I said.
We
laughed again.
We
wandered to an opening near the lake. A crowd of people gathered. They all held
the candlelit poinsettia bouquets. We joined them. Debbie and Dereck nodded.
The crowd started singing Silent Night.
The warm cheerful voices grew in volume. The carolers began to walk around the
property, arm in arm. They embraced their candles to light the way.
Denver
chanted the words in a soft, dreamy tone. Her voice echoed across the lake. It
took my breath away. We walked arm in arm. Silent
Night turned into Winter Wonderland.
At some point, I stopped singing. My mouth gaped open as I listened.
“What?”
Denver asked.
The
two of us stopped. The rest of the crowd moved on, in song, without us.
“I
guess…I guess I didn’t realize you had such a beautiful singing voice.”
“I
don’t.” Denver blushed.
“Not
true at all! You do have an amazing voice, you really do. I should have you
sing for me some time so I can record it, and sample it over my mixes.”
“Seriously?
Honestly, Dexx? Do you really mean it?”
“Yes!
Why are you so surprised?”
Guest Post - What was your hardest scene to
write?
What a wonderful question. What was the hardest scene I
had to write for Poppies for Christmas?
Funny, even though I exist inside the romance genre, anything remotely intimate
makes me blush while I write a story, and then again while I edit. But
honestly, the hardest scene was when Denver Davies, Declan’s sister and Poppy’s
friend, had an emotional meltdown Christmas morning while opening presents, and
the aftermath with her mother.
Through a misunderstanding Denver felt her mother
questioned her beauty, her abilities, and her role in the family as the younger
daughter. Mother-daughter relationships are intense and complicated. They are
beautiful and challenging. I cried when I wrote the scene. And, I cried every
time I encountered it, either through the editing process or rereading my work.
It brought me to a place in my mind as the daughter in my own family growing
up, I have a brother, and it took me to a place deep inside me heart as a
mother of two very different girls.
I cherish the scene, and the resolution that took place. Taking
on a story about a family and their relationships can be brutal yet
therapeutic. Now that I am an adult with children I have experienced both ends
of those roles. As the writing trance took over I was very excited to see where
the complex relationship between these women took me. Plus, holidays are
traditionally filled with glorious highs and heart wrenching lows. With the
Davies family, hopefully they enjoyed mostly good times, good food, good
company, and festive cheer, as they celebrate with the people they love the
most.
As a writer you just never know what scenes will prove
the most challenging until it happens, and mothers and daughters simply have a
sweet and special spot in my heart.
Thank you so much!!!
Xoxo
Stacy Keywell
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Author
Stacy Renée Keywell lives a life of fabulous clichés. She enjoys asking
rhetorical questions, and speaking redundantly. Stacy works hard at telling bad
jokes, dancing oddly yet awesomely, and making up amazing new words in hopes
that they will one day find their way into the dictionary. She strives to love
without labels. She vows to bravely stand by the sides of those who need her,
especially her two daughters. Stacy, her husband, and her children live in
Michigan in a quaint house in the woods.
Giveaway:
·
One (1) winner will receive a $20 Amazon Gift Card
(INT)
1 comments:
This sounds like a wonderful Christmas read.
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